Throughout much of American history, the citizenship status of a woman was tied to that of her husband. In fact until the early 20th century a woman had no separate citizenship status of her own. If you have immigrant ancestors, male or female, or if your female relative married an immigrant, you may want to take a look at the article “Any woman who is now or may hereafter be married . . .” Women and Naturalization, ca. 1802-1940 on the National Archives website. —————————- Genealogy Tip of the Day is sponsored by GenealogyBank. In December, they are offering an annual subscription for a monthly rate equivalent to less than $5 a month!
Family history research is more than simply pointing and clicking your way to an ancestral answer–or finding where someone has already solved your problem. No matter what the TV commercials, the shows, and the websites indicate, some problems require a little more than five minutes of work or an “automated search” to find the answer. In the United States, the research becomes a little more challenging when the people being researched lived before the American Civil War in states that didn’t keep vital records. The problem is compounded if the individuals didn’t have much money and moved on a regular basis. In these situations, research becomes (at the very least) about: learning about all the records kept during the time period and locations where the ancestor lived; learning […]
Organizing your genealogical information geographically is simply: get a map. It is easy to overlook things when you don’t have a map at which to look. Political boundaries impact where records are kept and it is difficult to know which church or cemetery is nearby without one. Make certain you have contemporary maps as well as modern ones. For those with urban ancestors, street names change, subdivisions are added, etc. For those with rural ancestors, county lines do move and people do cross them. If the only map you have for a location is the one in your head, it’s time to get your head out of the clouds and get a real map. —————————————- Genealogy Tip of the Day is sponsored by GenealogyBank. Search there for your relative.
There may be times where the best you can do is to approximate. A location may only be as precise as the county or a date may only be as precise as the year. While for some researchers this can be frustrating, there are times where that level of detail is all the records will allow you to determine and it may not impact the more important conclusions about family relationships. It’s rare when an entire genealogical conclusion hinges on whether a person was born on 17 or 18 December of 1915.
I saw the database title on Ancestry.com titled “Pastoral Directories” and immediately searched for a relative who was an Australian minister. He was not located. And that’s because this directory was of livestock owners–not ministers. Always learn about a new database before searching it. And always keep your assumptions in check. Things might not mean what you think they do.
You can manage your email subscription to Genealogy Tip of the Day here. Our complete blog update is here–which includes all my genealogy blogs and some additional content only in the update. Genealogy Tip of the Day is sponsored by GenealogyBank. In December, they are offering an annual subscription for a monthly rate equivalent to less than $5 a month!
If you are going to a courthouse to research, determine what their policy is regarding the use of digital cameras and cell phones to take pictures of records before you arrive. Some facilities will not allow you to use these items to take pictures of records in their custody–instead preferring you to have copies made at a per-page fee. Consider asking (nicely) if you can pay the same fee to take pictures of the items instead of making paper copies. Suggest that it’s easier on the records, uses less paper, etc. and that you are willing to have the staff watch as you take pictures. These are things to find out before you arrive at the facility if at all possible.
This is our last webinar offering for December–“Planning for your research trip.” Details are here. Please join us!
Is that tombstone incomplete? The Bible verses were never completely inscribed on this stone from Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery south of Carthage in Hancock County, Illinois.
At long last we’ve released my “Preserving Past You” presentation. It is an overview of prepping for preserving your genealogical material past your lifespan. It’s not a technical presentation, but focuses on things to think about, getting started, actually doing something, thinking about what is practical to preserve, and planning as much as possible Don’t put off saving your stuff. The presentation (media file and handout) can be ordered here for immediate download.
Keep a chart of your failures–so you know where you have looked. A good column to add to this chart would be one for the reason why this person was eliminated as the person of interest. That’s a good thing to keep track of as well. —————————————- Genealogy Tip of the Day is sponsored by GenealogyBank. Search there for your relative.
I host several blogs–all have separate email lists and need to be subscribe to separately (there’s more about me here). Each has a subscription link on the top portion of each page. The blogs are: Genealogy Tip of the Day-one tip every day, rain or shine. Search Tip of the Day–one tip as they come across my path. We post periodic FamilySearch updates here as well. Rootdig–where I blog about my research, research methods, and whatever else crosses my path. Daily Genealogy Transcriber–one piece of handwriting everyday–with answers posted. Try your hand at guessing the writing. If you get one one of the lists and can’t get off, forward the message to me at mjnrootdig@gmail.com. Thanks! And please let others know about our blogs!
We’ve mentioned this before, but it’s worth a repeat for those who might not have seen it and for those who need a reminder. Charting out inconsistent information can help you to notice patterns and trends–or just make you a little more organized. Help support Genealogy Tip of the Day by visiting any of the following sites: Try a GenealogyBank Genealogy Search to see what you find. AncestryDNA offers Books on Michael’s Genealogy Shelf
It’s an extremely minor thing, but it makes a good point about the importance of one word. My grandmother had dentures and either got them in “her thirties” or in “the thirties.” Sometimes one word makes all the difference.
Everything is about context–even abbreviations. From the illustration it should be apparent that these 1840-era abbreviations are for places in the Boston area. Abbreviations can be used for more than just place names, can change over time, and may vary from one location to another. When trying to determine what an abbreviation references, keep in mind the context–the time period and the location. Abbreviations, like many things, are all about context. ——————————————- This item was located on GenealogyBank. Search there for your relative.
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